


Winter's Ardour

by NamelesslyNightlock, Rabentochter



Series: This Was A Bad Idea (but we know what we're doing) [14]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Banter, Bickering, Christmas Fluff, Dorks in Love, Feels, Fluff, Fluffy Ending, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Happy, Holding Hands, Kissing, Light Angst, Loki & Tony Stark Friendship, Loki (Marvel) Feels, Loki (Marvel) Gets a Hug, Loki (Marvel) Needs a Hug, M/M, Mindless Fluff, Mutual Pining, Pining, Romantic Fluff, Sharing Clothes, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-08
Updated: 2019-12-08
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:15:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21717505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NamelesslyNightlock/pseuds/NamelesslyNightlock, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rabentochter/pseuds/Rabentochter
Summary: When Loki starts to seem a little down, Tony gets a pretty good idea as to why– and he hopes a little Christmas cheer might help bring a smile back to Loki’s lips.
Relationships: Loki/Tony Stark
Series: This Was A Bad Idea (but we know what we're doing) [14]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1388356
Comments: 35
Kudos: 323





	Winter's Ardour

**Author's Note:**

  * For [BennyBatch](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BennyBatch/gifts).



> HAPPY BIRTHDAY TDT WE HOPE THAT YOU ENJOY THIS FLUFFY THING 🎉🎈  
>   
> (We really did try to hold back on the angst, we _swear._ )  
>   
> Art by **Rabentochter** , fic by **NamelesslyNightlock**.

It probably wasn’t a good idea to start the day with a challenge.

It was just– that was how Tony and Loki had always rolled. They’d become friends by constantly pushing one another, by being the only two in the tower who could match each other for wit. Or, well, Bruce possibly could, but he didn’t have the same sense of _competition_ as they did.

If ever one of them issued a challenge, they could do so _knowing_ that their friend would match them over and over again—

Which was _why_ Tony had issued this one.

Loki had been in a bit of a mood, you see– well, Tony didn’t normally _like_ to use the word ‘mopey’, but, honestly. That was pretty spot on.

He’d always been a little sharp around the edges, and Tony knew that all the others found him hard to like. Tony never had, though. He liked the way that Loki always spoke his mind, the way that he didn’t try to sugar-coat a thing. He was impressed by the way that Loki could manipulate any situation to his advantage, and he loved the glint that would shine in Loki’s eyes whenever he began to win an argument. Loki’s smirk in those moments, curving along the edges of his thin lips was always something to behold, and– yeah, maybe one of the reasons Tony liked poking and prodding him so much was so that he could see one of those smirks, so that he could make Loki _smile._

But, maybe that was getting a little off topic.

Or… maybe it wasn’t.

Because for lack of a better word Loki really had been moping about the place, and… well, while Tony wasn’t normally one to try and encroach on someone else’s space when it seemed that they needed a little time to themselves, he also didn’t want to just stand off to the side if there was something he could possibly do to help make Loki smile again. To help him feel a little _better_.

And after a few chats with Thor and a consultation with Doctor Foster regarding the difference in time and seasons between Asgard and Earth, Tony… thought that he might be able to at least make a _guess_ as to why Loki was feeling a little down.

And he thought he might know a way to help cheer him up, too—

But when Tony knocked on the door to his friend’s quarters, he received no response.

“J?” Tony asked, a frown creasing his brow. “He’s definitely in there, yeah?”

“Yes, Sir,” JARVIS said. “He has asked me to inform ‘whoever it is’ that he is sleeping.”

If he hadn’t been worried for Loki, Tony almost might have laughed at that. Good old J, always finding the loophole.

But as it were, Tony just sighed.

“Lokes?” he called, raising his voice to a point that he hoped it would get through even the well-built walls of the tower. “Hey, it’s me. I was just thinking that we should go and do something.”

There was no response, and Tony glanced to where he knew the nearest camera was with half a plea before turning back to the door.

“Lokes, come on, please?” He asked. “Thor’s making noises about going ice skating, and I’ve got to be honest but that does _not_ sound like my idea of a fun afternoon. Do you think you could help me out? _Please?”_

There was still no response, not even a peep. And Tony didn’t want to be pushy. Surely, Loki would know that Tony was there, right? If he wanted to talk? Tony had at least made sure of that. But just as Tony was thinking about – well, not giving up, but making a _tactical retreat_ – the door pulled open, and Loki’s impassive stare met Tony’s worried gaze.

“If you require rescuing from my brother’s schemes, Anthony, you are going to have to go somewhere else,” Loki said before Tony could get even a single word out.

“Don’t feel like playing knight in shining armour?” Tony asked, his voice laced with a little hope. He hadn’t been lying– Thor really _had_ been talking about ice skating, and. Well, Tony quite liked his ankles in one piece, thank you very much.

“I don’t need to be a knight,” Loki sniffed. “I am a _prince—”_

“Ah, I see,” Tony said, tilting his head. “That’s why you’ve been hiding up here? You’re waiting for the knight to come and rescue _you_. Well, I’m lacking a horse but the amour’s just downstairs.”

Loki arched a brow– and Tony was rather gratified to see that some of the sadness was melting away already, though he wasn’t yet quite smiling. “You wouldn’t have the patience to be a knight, I’m afraid,” Loki said.

“You’re right,” Tony agreed. “I could still get you out of this tower, though. What do you say?”

Loki seemed to hesitate– his eyes glancing back behind him before he met Tony’s gaze once more, as if he didn’t want to accept at all. But, then– “What did you have in mind?”

“Well, I _was_ wondering if you wanted to go out for a walk?” Tony asked.

“In this weather?”

Tony grimaced, and glanced to the window he could see over Loki’s shoulder. It was mid-December, and the skies were grey and dreary. The clouds had opened up and had been pouring torrents of rain down on them all week, and there was no indication that there was any chance of it letting up.

“Maybe not,” Tony allowed– but there was an idea already forming in his mind. “We don’t necessarily have to walk _here_. We could go somewhere else. Or have you been lying about your teleportation abilities?” The last few words were said with a smug grin, and when Loki’s eyes narrowed, Tony knew he had him.

“It’s called _skywalking,”_ Loki corrected, just as Tony knew that he would. “And I have never lied to you. Where is it that you want to go?”

Tony grinned. “Are you sure you want to leave that so open? I could name anywhere in the world. We could go somewhere with snow, see a _proper_ Christmas Market or—”

“Asgard’s winter solstice celebrations would be difficult to beat,” Loki cut in. “If you think that you can impress me—”

“Oh, I know that I can.” Tony crossed his arms. “So, is this how it’s going to be? You come with me to a Christmas thing, and we’ll see if it tops Asgard’s?”

Again, Loki hesitated– but for such a short moment that Tony wasn’t even certain he had seen it. And before Tony could comment, before he could ask if this really _was_ something that Loki wanted to do… Loki’s smirk was finally in place.

But it wasn’t one of the smirks that Tony had been hoping to see– this one lacked the usual amusement that warmed even the sharpest of smiles. No, this one was cold. Forced. But all Tony could do was hope that he could turn it around– and Loki’s next words at least gave him the chance of an opportunity.

“Name your location.”

Tony thought about it, already having some idea since he knew that the Christmas festivals in Europe were particularly spectacular. For a moment, _Germany_ hovered on his lips– but then he remembered what had happened when he’d made the mistake of taking Thor to Munich the September just gone, and he choked the suggestion back down. There was no way any of the Avengers would be able to show their faces anywhere in Bavaria ever again. Not for at _least_ the next hundred years. So, where else in Europe had a picturesque scene that might be able to give Loki a little cheer?

There were many to choose from of course, but Tony had already hesitated enough, and he spoke the name of the very next place he thought of.

“Scotland,” he said firmly, only just managing to _not_ make it sound like a question. “Somewhere in the north, where they might have some snow. J, any suggestions?”

“Might I suggest Inverness, Sir?” JARVIS said, not even missing a single beat.

“Inverness,” Tony said. He thought he might have heard of it before, but if JARVIS was giving the suggestion then it was more than likely the best option. “Right. Lokes, we got a deal?”

Loki looked down to Tony’s outstretched hand for a moment before curling his own around it– and as he did so, his expression softened just a little.

But then Tony felt a familiar spark of seiðr across his skin, and he gripped Loki’s hand tight as his friend led him onto the branches of Yggdrasil. And… well, Tony knew that Loki was right to say that this wasn’t teleportation, because there was no way that teleportation could feel like this. This wasn’t just disappearing from one place and appearing into another– this was dancing over the fabric of reality, Loki’s hand warm in his and keeping him safe as they skirted the edge of the void to cross the world in a single bound.

When they stepped out onto solid ground, Tony almost fell flat on his face, thrown off balance by the change from technicoloured brightness to an inky black sky. It had been an hour or so before midday when they had left New York– but of course, in Scotland the sun had long since set. The air was crisp and the ground was slick with ice, and had it not been for Loki’s hand, Tony would have gone sprawling.

As it was, the moment he was steady Tony pulled his hand away– but certainly not because he _wanted_ to.

“Ah, shit,” Tony said, tugging the sleeves of his thin sweater over his hands and crossing his arms over his chest. “Should’ve grabbed a coat.”

Loki’s sigh was audible– and when Tony glanced to him, his eyes narrowed as he saw that Loki, of course, was suddenly all rugged up in a warm looking coat complete with a fur collar, and even knee-high, fur-lined boots. But before Tony could even huff at the unfairness of it all, Loki twisted green-glowing fingers through the air and seemed to pluck a winter coat from nothing at all.

“Here,” Loki said, holding it out to Tony. As Tony pulled his arms through the sleeves, it became clear that the coat was sized for someone with much longer limbs– but a simple touch to Tony’s shoulder was all Loki needed to resize it. The coat itself wasn’t overly thick, but it must have been enchanted because it warmed Tony right the way through. It was mostly black, and made of something that was almost wool– and the lapels were coloured a dark, dark green. Tony was about to comment on it, but then Loki also pulled out a gold and green scarf that looked somewhat familiar – though Tony couldn’t say exactly from where – and looped it over Tony’s neck before smoothing the ends down over his chest.

“It has to be green, huh?” Tony asked, feeling a little out of breath. There was no point in telling himself that it was just from the cold. He wasn’t oblivious to the way that Loki’s fingers fiddling with the scarf made his heart race, he wasn’t a total _idiot_. He just. Preferred not to think about it, that was all.

“I will not have you wearing red,” Loki said, rolling his eyes as if that were something entirely _unthinkable–_ and Tony had to hold in a laugh. Then Loki paused. “Well, unless you really—”

“Loki,” Tony chuckled, reaching up to take Loki’s hand and entwining their fingers together. “It’s fine.”

Loki’s eyes widened slightly as he looked down to their interlocked hands, and Tony near on froze, worried that he had overstepped– but then, Loki… _smiled._

And that warmed Tony more than the coat ever could.

They had come out in the middle of the old town, and neither of them knew their way around. That was all right though– Tony simply pulled out his phone, and JARVIS – as connected as always via the SI satellites – was able to provide them with a map to somewhere called Whin Park. It was a bit of a trek, but neither of them minded. Tony was especially comfortable in his warm coat, snuggling down into the green scarf that smelled of _Loki_ and holding Loki’s hand tightly in his own.

Still, the air _was_ brisk, and as they crossed a bridge over the River Ness – Tony, of course, telling a rather unimpressed Loki all about Nessie as they walked – Tony felt a shiver of cold go up his spine, and he instinctively leaned in closer to his friend.

“Are you still cold?” Loki asked worriedly. “Or have you managed to scare yourself with your story?”

“Nessie isn’t _scary,”_ Tony insisted. “I think she’d be friendly—”

“My own experience with large creatures of legend leaves me believing otherwise,” Loki said.

“Maybe we’ll have to go looking for her then,” Tony said. “Together.”

Loki smiled again. Tony took that as a win. “I think I would like that.”

Tony’s own smile, though, turned into yet another shudder. “Maybe, uh, just on a slightly warmer day.”

Loki frowned at that, and Tony silently cursed himself for making that smile melt away. But then Loki was reaching into yet another of his pocket dimensions, and with just a flick of his wrist he was holding a beanie– which was, of course, dark green.

Tony narrowed his eyes. “Loki,” he said. “Do you know what that will do my hair?”

Loki tilted his head, his lips pressing together. “It could hardly make it any worse.”

“Hey!”

“It will keep you warm,” Loki said, holding it out.

Trying to keep from grimacing and reminding himself _why_ he was out in the cold in the first place, Tony came up with a palatable offer. “All right,” he said. “But… I’m not wearing it alone.”

Loki’s expression suddenly went blank. “Anthony,” he said. “I do not—”

“If I have to wear one, so do you,” Tony cut in. “Or… are you too worried that I’ll look better in it than you?”

Loki shook his head– _almost_ smiling now. “If you _insist.”_

“Oh, I do,” Tony grinned, taking the offered hat and pulling it down over his ears. “But _I_ get to pick it.”

Loki looked like he thought he was going to regret this, but Tony was smiling as he tugged Loki by the hand the rest of the way down the bridge. They managed to find a store that was still open, and they made a beeline for the beanies.

Tony saw the one he wanted immediately, and he grabbed it without any further ado.

Loki did not seem to appreciate the choice in the slightest. “When I said that I was not going to give you anything red to wear,” he said, speaking slowly. “I did _not_ mean that you could try and force the colour upon me instead.”

“It’s not Thor-red,” Tony insisted. “It’s a bit darker than that. And anyway, look– Thor wears red and silver, right? This has got gold on it. So it’s Iron Man red.”

“That does not necessarily help your case,” Loki said– though Tony couldn’t help but notice that he _was_ looking at the hat with a little more interest.

“I think it might,” Tony said cheekily. “And I mean. If you don’t like it, I could just buy it for _me_ and you can have your green one back—”

Loki snatched it out of his hand and jammed it on his own head, arching a wry eyebrow in a way that clearly stated he believed he had won the argument. Tony wasn’t about to tell him otherwise.

“All right then,” Tony laughed.

They paid for the hat at the counter – the kid who rang them up seemed to recognise them, but thankfully one glare from Loki seemed to be enough to stop him from gushing – and then they were back out into the cold, the _both_ of them now with hats to keep their ears warm.

Not, of course, that Loki actually needed it but… looking at Loki wearing that red and gold hat, Tony just couldn’t keep the grin off his face, even as it began to feel like his nose was freezing off. But he buried back down into his scarf, breathing in with a smile– and he shifted so that he and Loki were walking close enough that their arms brushed with every step.

And, uh. There were a _lot_ of steps. It turned out that the park was little further than he had anticipated– but, you know what? That didn’t even matter, really. The time felt like it was flying, because they were having fun. They didn’t stop talking, not even once, though they changed topics dozens of times in a conversation that no one else ever could have _hoped_ to follow– and by the time they saw the coloured lights as they turned their final corner, it felt like hardly any time had passed at all.

It… had, though. Because, when they reached the entrance to the spectacular winter wonderland that JARVIS had promised, they were met with locked gates and a heart-sinking sign.

Closed at 7pm– almost half an hour before.

“God _damn_ it,” Tony groaned. “Of fucking course—”

“It’s all right,” Loki said.

“We were going to see the Christmas stuff,” Tony groaned, lifting the hand that was not holding Loki’s and running it down his face.

“We could come back tomorrow?” Loki tried. “Now that I know where it is, I could get us here faster.”

“Tomorrow,” Tony sighed. “Yeah. But… tomorrow isn’t your birthday, is it?”

Loki’s hand tensed at that, and Tony winced. _Oops_.

“Uh. I mean, I know that, it seemed like you didn’t want to celebrate it. So I thought, maybe we could do something else. Something that would take your mind of it, but… something that would still be special, you know?”

Looking at Loki’s face in that moment, seeing the emotions skittering across it like shadows cast by a flame– Tony couldn’t help but feel like complete and utter shit. A feeling that only grew a little worse as Loki began to talk.

“You know, I have not celebrated the day of my birth since… since I learned of my heritage,” Loki said. “I was not expecting to celebrate it now. I did not think that anyone other than Thor even knew.”

Ah, yes. It really hadn’t been a good idea to issue that challenge earlier, had it? To try and get Loki to come and do something that he so clearly had wanted nothing to do with. Damn. Tony shouldn’t have assumed that he could make everything better, when he didn’t even know the whole story.

“I’m sorry,” Tony said. “I shouldn’t have dragged you out, I shouldn’t have made you come all this way.” He tried to tug his hand from Loki’s– but then, to his surprise, Loki just held on tighter.

“You didn’t _make_ me do anything,” Loki countered. “I am more than capable of making my own choices.”

“Well, yeah,” Tony sighed. “But, still. I could have just, let you be. I _know_ that you like your space, but I just wanted to make sure that you were okay. And then, when I worked out that it was your birthday, and it seemed like you weren’t particularly _happy_ about it, I was hoping we could just do something nice, you know?”

Loki’s green gaze flickered across Tony’s expression for a few moments, as if he were searching for something. Then—

“Anthony,” he said. “I didn’t want to celebrate my birthday because of what’s happened to me in the past. But… I will always say yes to spending time with you, now and in the future. We didn’t have to come all the way across your world– I would have been perfectly happy spending the time with you in the tower, wrapped in blankets and watching one of those terrible Christmas movies you enjoy.”

“Hey, I watch them for the cringe value,” Tony defended immediately– and predictably, apparently, going by Loki’s small, breathy laugh. But hey, even if it was at Tony’s expense that _was_ still a laugh– and that was all that Tony wanted. It made him melt just a little, and his voice was soft as he spoke again. “Then, maybe tomorrow we can do that,” he said. “I… I would like that.”

“So would I,” Loki agreed.

“But I _am_ sorry about this,” Tony groaned, gesturing to the gate. “I just… I wanted this to be perfect.”

Loki smiled, then, small and soft and _real_ in a way that made Tony’s heart skip a beat– in a way that made him _hope_ like nothing else ever had before. “Oh, Anthony,” he said. “I’m with you. That means it already is.”

Tony felt himself warm all the way through, and he leaned in a little closer, still _hoping_ —

But then, instead of the desired brush of Loki’s lips he felt the tingle of seiðr over his skin. Loki’s smile was bright as he pulled Tony just a few steps through the shining bright lights of the World Tree’s limbs—

And this time, when Tony’s feet hit solid ground, Loki’s arms curled around his waist and held him close and safe.

Glancing around, Tony’s eyes widened in wonder. Loki had taken them not only to the other side of the fence, but further into the park itself. The lights on the trees and the reflections in to the left were so bright that the whole world was alight with a kaleidoscope of colour, and they almost might as well have remained in Yggdrasil itself for the rainbow that gleamed all over their skin.

Loki looked absolutely beautiful– and he was watching Tony with such tenderness, as if he thought Tony the most precious thing in the world.

“ _Oh,”_ Tony breathed, his own hands sliding up Loki’s chest to loop around his shoulders. “You…”

“Anthony,” Loki whispered. “I’m going to kiss you now, if that’s all right?”

Tony didn’t wait nor stand on ceremony. He just pressed up on his toes and brought their lips together, kissing Loki with a sweet softness that he did not normally possess– but which Loki always seemed to bring out in him without even trying, even when they were battling wits or issuing challenges. Loki was everywhere, filling every sense. The scent that had clung to the scarf was thick in the air, and as Tony deepened the kiss Loki’s soft groan was one of the prettiest sounds that Tony had ever heard. And when they finally broke apart, their breathing a little too quick and their fingers clinging in clothes, their foreheads pressed together with only the material of their beanies separating their skin.

“Do you know what?” Loki asked, his eyes fluttering open to hold Tony’s gaze, the green glittering with all the colours of the rainbow. “I think this is certainly more exquisite than anything that Asgard could ever muster.”

“Silvertongue,” Tony teased.

And then, Loki’s grin was bright. “Do you think you could do any better?”

“Better than that cheesiness? Yeah, I think I could, given ample opportunity to try.”

“Well then,” Loki said, leaning down once more. “It’s a good thing that we’ve got all the time in the world.”

And as their smiles pressed back together in their second kiss of many, Tony didn’t feel the cold anymore– not when being with Loki gave him all the warmth that he could ever need.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find the art for this fic on tumblr [here.](https://rabentochter.tumblr.com/post/189548339499/winters-ardour-with-quietlyapocalyptic-for-the)


End file.
